The USC baseball team scored 8 runs in the ninth inning to erase a three run deficit in a rollercoaster of a game, to defeat Washington State 15-10 Friday night at Bailey-Brayton Field. USC improves to 16-8 (3-4) while the Cougars fall to 12-11 (2-5).

USC got on the board in the first inning after Garrett Stubbs advanced to second on a failed pick-off attempt by J.D. Lechanby and Kevin Roundtree brought him home with a single up the middle for the early 1-0 lead.

The Cougars answered back in the bottom of the inning with an RBI single from Derek Jones to score Jason Monda.

In the third, Monda scorched a hard liner to left that was misjudged by Kevin Swick and ended up on third base. Taylor Ard followed with a double down the left field line to score the run and take a 2-1 lead. Slugger Derek Jones added on with a two-run homer to center off Andrew Triggs to make it a 4-1 ball game.
WSU's Ian Sagdal later scored on a wild pitch from Triggs in the fourth to put the Cougars up 5-1.

Roundtree led off the sixth with a liner to right that he stretched into a double with a head first slide to beat the throw from Jones. Matt Foat singled up the middle to score the run and start the Trojans comeback. Dante Flores belted a double to left over the head of Adam Nelubowich to give the Trojans two runners in scoring position. A crisp liner to center off the bat of Swick scored Foat and kept the inning rolling for the Trojans. Brandon Garcia followed with a double to right to bring in another run to make it 5-4. Next, James Roberts doubled down the left field line to score Swick. However, Garcia was called out after missing the bag at third on his way to the plate. Roberts would score from third on a sac-bunt from Houts to take a 6-5 lead and cap a five-run frame for the Trojans.

The lead wouldn't last long as the Cougars would bounce back with a five-run inning of their own. With two on and two out, Ard grounded to Landecker at third who's throw to first sailed wide allowing Sagdal and Monda to score as Ard advanced to third. Triggs intentionally walked Jones before departing for reliever Bobby Wheatley. A passed ball from Wheatley scored Ard from third and the Cougars would load the bases as the damage continued to build. Patrick Claussen capitalized with a single to center to score two more and give Washington State a 10-6 lead.

USC chipped away at the lead with RBI singles from Jake Hernandez in the seventh and ninth innings to bring the Trojans within two at 10-8. With the bases loaded and two out in the ninth Landecker brought the Trojans all the way back as he ripped a bullet up the middle off Anthony Drobnick (2-1) to score Hernandez and Sean Spear and tie the game at 10-10. Foat then drew a bases loaded walk from Richie Ochoa for the go-ahead run putting USC on top 11-10. Freshman Dante Flores broke the game wide open as cleared the bases with a three-run double down the left field line for a 14-10 lead. Swick doubled to left to plate Flores and complete USC's scoring at 15-10.